Rotary heating-furnace.



PATENTED AUG. 7, 1906.

3. McGAFF. ROTARY HEATING FURNACE.

APPLIOATION FILED APR- 13, 1906- Que 0 00006 n o 0 R42 o oooooo ooooo Pb00000000000 H n u n H h JNVENTOR.

' WITNESSES:

JOHNt/IcGAFF, or TOLEDO, OHIO.-.

ROTARY HEATBNG FURNACE,

Specification of Letters Patent.

Iatented Aug. "4'', 1906 Kpplioation filed April 13,1906; Serial No,311.498.

To H whom, it nwiy concern:

Be it known that I, JOHN MCGAFF, a citizen 0f the United States, and aresident of Toledo, in the county of Lucas and State of Ohio, haveinvented certain new and useful Im rovements in Rotary Heating-Furnaces;and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exactdescription of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in theart to which it app'ertains to make and use the same, reference beinghad to the accompanying drawings, and tothe figures of reference markedthereon, which form a part of this specification.

My invention relates to furnaces for the working of all kinds of iron orsteel scra s,

i and particularly to flame-furnaces or t e kind'in which the work isnot embedded or mixed with the fuel, but is subjected to the flame andheat arising therefrom.

The object of my invention is to sim lif and cheapen the initialheatingand wor ring of such metals into balls by the provision, in combinationwith the combustion-chamber, of a rotary heating-chamber which is, soshaped as to cause the metal therein to be continuouslv puddled orWorked into a ball during the eating thereof and the slag and ein'derssegregated therefrom, thus obviating the skilled labor heretoforenecessary to puddle or work the metal into balls.

The construction, operation, and arrangement of the parts of myinvention are fully described in the following specification, andillustrated in the accompanying drawings, in which Figure 1 is a planView, and Fig. 2 a central longitudinal vertical section, of the furnaceembodying my invention.

Referring to the drawings, 1 represents the fuel or combustion chamber,2 the rotary with the usual bridge 5, over which the flames andhighly-heated gases from the burning fuel are required to pass to enterthe heatingchamber.

The heating drum or chamber 2 is of cylindrioal form and has its endscontracted, as shown, to form the restricted entrance and exit passages6 and 7, respectively, and the intermediate annularlybulged portion 8,

which forms a trough in which the metal is worked. The exit end 7 ofthis drum communicates with the chimney fiue through a w suitableopening Qtherein, while the entrance end thereof is flared or taperedoutwardly to form a conical mouth which abuts against the inner end ofthe fuel-chamber with its in ner upper edge coinciding with thecorresponding edge of said fuel-chamber and has t e radius of its rimsubstantiaily that of the are described by the arch of the fuel-chamberroof at such point. The drum 2 is shown as being formed of an outercasing of sheet metal having an inner lining of fire-brick, fire-clay,or the like. A door or doorslO are positioned at one side of the bulgedportion of this drum to close an opening therein through which the'metalis inserted or with drawn. A plurality of openings 11 are If videdthrough the casingof the bulged p.

.tion of the drum 2 for the drainage of slag and cinders therefrom.These also form windo'ws through which the metal within the chamber maybeinspected.

v The drum is supported at its ends in proper position between thefuelchamber 1 and stack 3 by the supports 12 12, carrying thegroovedsegmental stirrups or members 13 13 in which the annular ledges orshoulders 14- 14 at the ends of the heating-chamber rotatably rest, asshown.

A sprocket-wheel 15 is mounted on the re duced end '7 of the drum 2 andmeshes witha drive-chain. 16, by means of which a rotary movement iscommunicated to said drum, or it may be driven in any other suitablemanner.

The operation of my invention is as follows: The scrap metal beingdeposited in the drum 2 through the door-opening therein, the door 10 isthen closed and the rotation of the drum started. The flames and heatedgases arising from the fuel in the coinbustion-chaniher 1 pass over thebridge 5 therein and impinge against the upper inwardly and downwardlyinclined surface of the conical mouth (5 of the heating drum or chamber3 and are caused thereby to take a downward course and be concentratedupon the work in the lower portion of the trough S. The rotary movementof the drum causes the metal to be kept continually turning over, sothat all sides thereof a re acted, upon by the heat, and us the mass ofmetal approaches a welding heat causes it to he rolled into a ball, asshown at .17, thus effecting a quicker and ignore solid mass than ismore even heating of the mass of metal than would otherwise be the caseand causing it,

no to its weight, to becompressed into a possible by hand. The cindersand slag which become separated 'from the rolling mass during theheating proc ess drop throu h the openings 11 in the drum to the floor.n the working of some classes of n1etalsuch, for instance, as pig-ironit is preferable to plug the openings 11 and to draw proper intervals.When the mass has been heated androlled to the desired state, the ro-'tation of the drum is stopped, the door opened at the under sidethereof, and the ball allowed to drop out.

I wish it understood that I do not desire to be limited to the exactdetails of construc tion shown and described, for obvious modipersonskilled in the the ci'nders and slag from the drum at.

to secure by Let and communicating l l i l l I I l l y i i estate taryheating-chambe tracted to form an. intei .im tion and its entrance endthe side of the fuel-she tion with its exit and h; coinciding with theinner and substantially describii the roof is an arc.

3. A furnace having in om chamber and a horizontai drum communicating atone exit of the fuel-chai'nber and a with a chimney, said drum he bulgedintermediate its ends to ternal trough and having such bu provided witha door and drama substantially as described.

4 The combination with t her, of a horizontally-disposcd dricalheating-ch amber having 5 1 t ing therethrough, its entrance flaredmouth whereby the flame upper surface thereof are ah wardly, and itsintermediate po rically expanded to form a tra 1 drainitgeppeningsthrough its a In testimony whereof i, signed my name to this specific lpresence of two subscribing; wi

T i T Witnesses:

C. W. OWEN, HAZEL B. HIETT.

